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Related topicsForums - how to get a visa for Italy , simplified all here! - Insiders Abroad
Welcome to insiders ABROAD. The English-speaking community for insight and information on all things in Italy
how to get a visa for Italy , simplified all here!
Hello everyone, i saw this article on the local newspaper which I wanted to share with you all since visa questions are usually the most common.
This article is not meant to provide a comprehensive description (how boring!) of the Italian legal system, but it does provide prospective expats with a brief overview, a ‘how-to’ for those considering a move to Italy to set up a business, get married, buy a house, or convert one type of visa into another.
The most common reasons for coming to Italy are tourism, study, work, to join or follow family, and business. Let’s start with the first three and the entrance to Italy
TOURIST VISA
Do you really need a visa to enter Italy as a tourist?
(A) Visa-free access to the Schengen states for 90 days:
If you are from a country such as the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and other countries covered by the Schengen visa waiver scheme (see the immigration section at ) and are planning to travel within the European Schengen area for a maximum of three months in any six-month period, you will not need a tourist visa.
Before spending a long time at the Italian Consulate to apply for a visa, check online to see if your home country participates in the visa waiver program of the Schengen states. If you are from a country that does not participate in the Schengen visa waiver scheme, you will need a tourist visa (type C) no matter the length of your trip in Italy.
After 90 days in the Schengen states, you are required to leave the area for at least 90 days before returning to Italy without a visa. The days are calculated by the date stamped on your passport upon entry in the Schengen states. This serves as your tourist visa during your stay. And the number of days does not include the days that you spend outside of the Schengen area.
Three important, practical notes: (1) You might hear that, if, at the end of your 90 days you go to the UK or any other country outside the Schengen area for a few days, you can ‘recharge’ your 90-day credit and come right back to Italy for another 90 days. This is not true: once your 90 days in the Schengen states are up, you must spend at least 90 days outside of the 25-state area. (2) The time you spend in a country that is not part of the Schengen area is not counted as part of your 90 days. To ensure that those days you spend outside are not calculated as part of your 90 days, I suggest that every time you leave the Schengen area, you ask the custom authorities stamp your passport to record the date and time away. (3) With a tourist visa, you cannot work in Italy.
(B) Long-stay and ‘national’ visas
If you plan is to visit Italy for more than 90 continuous days (for a maximum of 365 days), you will need a proper visa (type D), which is valid only for the country that has issued the visa and includes an airport transit in another Schengen state.
STUDENT VISA
Cooking, fine arts, art history, fashion design, Italian language: the range and number of courses offered in Italy is impressive. If you plan to study here as part of a school program, it is likely that your school will give you instructions or even take care of the requirements and papers you need. The visa provided will indicate how long you are allowed to stay in Italy and travel in the Schengen area.
On the other hand, if you plan to study in Italy independently, you need to keep in mind a few important things. First of all, ask the Italian Consulate in your home country if there is a minimum requirement of hours that you need to take per month in order to have a student visa. In many cases, the student visa is granted only if you commit to 20 hours of courses per week (or 80 hours a month). This is also an important question to ask the school, as sometimes there are special offers for non-intensive classes (about 10 hours a week), which might be not enough to comply with the Italian Consulate requirements for the student visa.
Note: As of September 2010, if you will be studying in Italy for less than three months and you come from a country that participates in the Schengen visa waiver program, you do not need a student visa. However, if you are also planning to work while studying abroad, with a student visa you may work part-time (up to 20 hours a week).
Many people want to know if a student visa can be converted into a work visa. Although complicated, this procedure is possible (Art. 14 comma 5 D.P.R. n. 394/99). Look for more about this in a future TF article.
A work visa is the hardest to get. Winning the lottery may arguably be easier! Over the past 12 years, Italy, like the rest of Europe, has confronted a problem of immigration from non-European Union (EU) countries. The government has been forced to implement new laws to better control the situation. Therefore, only those people who have a real, concrete possibility to work in Italy can apply for such a visa. Having someone willing to hire you is not enough. Each year, the Italian government sets a maximum for the number of work visas to be granted to non-EU citizens: once the available visas are assigned, even if you have a person willing to hire you, you will have to wait until the next year.
However, on December 14, 2010 the Italian government enacted the Flow Decree, establishing the amount of immigrants to be admitted for work during 2011: a maximum of 100,000 workers. The visas are assigned mostly to domestic workers, caretakers and ‘special nationalities’ that have reserved quotas through a provision made by the minister of labor and social policies. Eleven thousand of those visas will be reserved for foreign citizens currently holding student and professional training visas, who will be allowed to convert their visas into work visas. No quotas, so far, seem to be assigned to self-employed persons. Further details are expected in the coming weeks, before the publication of the Flow Decree.
The process to obtain the eagerly awaited work visa can take more than four months. If you are planning to come to work in Italy in 2011, or if you currently have a student visa that you hope to convert to a work visa, read the following steps carefully because only the quickest and luckiest will have a chance of obtaining a working visa:
Phase 1: ‘click day’ * and nulla osta.The employer (or professional in charge of this procedure) will have to wait for the publication of the Flow Decree, expected at the end of January or beginning of F from that day forward (a.k.a. ‘click day’), it will be possible to submit the online request for hiring the non-EU citizen in question. The list of documents that need to be submitted with the application is long and includes information regarding the hiring company, the proposal of contract, and information about any accommodation will be provided to the employee. Filing the application correctly is any request done incorrectly is rejected. The applications are reviewed in chronological order, that is, first-come-first-served, after arriving in the computers of the immigration desk. Many have correctly compared this system to a real lottery, since the odds of getting a spot are very close to those of winning a jackpot.
A large portion of the quotas will be met during the very fist days, and it will take about one month to know if an application is one of the 100,000 accepted. In that case, if all the documents requested by law are in order, there is a good chance that the Immigration Desk will grant the nulla osta (a declaration of ‘no impediment’ to hiring the foreign worker). At this point it will mostly be a question of time and bureaucracy.
*As we went to press, we discovered that the deadline for ‘click day’ for work visa applications was set for January 30, so get applying! Go to the immigration section at
for more information.
Phase 2: the visa. After the nulla osta is granted, the Immigration Desk will e-mail it together with all relevant documents to the Italian Consulate of the employee-to-be’s home country. He or she then has six months from the granting of the nulla osta to present the request for the work visa at that consulate. The visa is normally granted within 30 days.
Phase 3: the contratto di soggiorno (residence contract) and permit of stay. With the visa stamped on his or her passport, the worker will finally be allowed to enter in Italy. At this point he is requested to go, within eight days, to the Sportello Unico Immigrazione to sign the contratto di soggiorno with the employer, obtain a fiscal code and get the form (Mod 209) to request the permesso di soggiorno (permit to stay). There is even a provision should the hirin see the box ‘What if?’)
The form for the permit of stay needs to be mailed with recorded delivery via post office to the questura (police) of the comune (municipality) where the employee will live and work. The post office gives the applicant a receipt with two codes-user I.D. and password-to use online at
to check on the status of the request.
Until the applicant physically obtains the permesso di soggiorno (which can take more than 10 months), the receipt from the post office is sufficient proof that the applicant is legally in Italy (therefore, carry it at all times in case of police check) and will be hired.
ONCE IN ITALY
According to law n. 68 of May 28, 1007 (‘Rules and regulations governing short stay of foreign nationals’), all the foreign citizens coming to Italy for medical visits, tourism, business and study for a time period shorter than three months do not require a residence permit (permesso di soggiorno). They simply have to declare their presence in Italy.
Citizens of Schengen visa waiver countries must notify their presence in Italy at the local central police station (questura) of the province in which they are staying within eight days of their entrance in Italy, by filling in the specific form entitled the Dichiarazione di Presenza. For citizens of non-Schengen countries, the Schengen stamp on the travel document at the moment of entrance in Italy is enough.
Therefore, if you plan to stay in Italy for more than three months, you must apply for a resident permit within eight working days of your arrival in Italy. This permit, which must be carried with the visitor at all times in case of police checks, authorizes residence in Italy for the duration indicated on the visa (article 5 of Law 286/1998 – Unified Code of Immigration).
EU citizens do not need a residence permit to stay in Italy for more than three months. If they want, they can ask to be registered in the Anagrafe della popolazione residente (public register of the residents) of the comune where they are living. In Florence, this office is located in Palazzo Vecchio and in several satellite offices in the neighborhood.
The permit of stay is a very important document for travelers because, under Schengen rules, with that permit, unless limitations are imposed, they can enter and leave the Schengen area and travel freely for up to 90 days in any six-month period within the other Schengen area states.
Finally, with any kind of permit of stay, as long as it is valid and updated, the employee can enter and leave the country as much as he wants, can change his job and enjoy the health care services provided by the Servizio Sanitario Nazionale (public health administration).
Avvocato Michele Capecchi will be writing a regular column for The Florentine. Should you have any general legal questions, send them to . He will compile the most relevant inquiries and respond in coming issues.
So what if, while you are waiting for the process to be completed, the employer-to-be changes his mind or realizes that he can no longer hire you? You have waited for months, you finally have your nulla osta, you are in Italy, and the day that you are supposed meet the employer at the Sportello Unico Immigrazione to sign the residence contract, he doesn’t show up. Don’t panic! Pursuant art. 22 of the Unified Code of Immigration 286/98, along with information released in 2007 by the Ministry of the Interior and a recent decision by the Administrative Court of Lombardia (TAR Lombardia,
n.7528 of December 13) dictates that if the worker has already entered Italy, the Sportello Unico shall authorize the worker to ask for a stay permit while waiting to find new employment. Therefore, you will receive a permesso di soggiorno per attesa occupazione, valid for six months during which the person may stay in Italy and look for alternate employment. Once you find a new employer willing to hire you, all he will have to do is come with you to the Sportello Unico and sign a new residence contract.
Avv. Michele Capecchi, registered lawyer for the Florence Order of Lawyers. Master of laws in American Law and International Legal Practice from Loyola Law School, Los Angeles.
Posted February 14th, 2011
Hi Georgette!
Thanks for sharing with the friends of &#” the article that I recently wrote on “The Florentine” .
Indeed as you all know the issues related to obtaining a Student VISA, a Working visa or converting one type of Permesso di Soggiorno in a different one is a draining task!
I just wanted to add a little note based on a question I received a few days ago.
The question is:
“Is it possible to renew the permesso di soggiorno for studying purpose, without leaving Italy, at the end of the course that allowed a student to enter in Italy?”
In other words, if I obtained a student visa to study fashion, can I extend (or better, renew) my permesso di soggiorno, at the end of the course, by enrolling to an Italian Language course?
Well, as always, a very general answer cannot cover all the different cases.
But, a recent note released by the Minister of the Interns (n.400/a
del 22 febbraio 2011), may help to answer to this interesting question.
In the mentioned note it is explained that:
- You CANNOT renew your old permit of stay if the new course you want to start is different from the one that originally allowed you to obtain the VISA
In this case, once your permit expire, you need to leave the country and apply again via the Italian Embassy in your own country.
- Only if you need to extend your stay in Italy to start a university course, in the same area of your original course, only in that case you can ask for the renewal of the original permit of stay.
As I said, every situation is different and can lead to a different result…But I think it was useful to share with you guys this very recent interpretation of the law released by the Government.
HAPPY EASTER!!
Michele Capecchi
Posted April 21st, 2011
thanks so much Michele! you have no idea how valuable your advice and expertise is! This is one of the most common questions I hear as well, if someone can renew their student visa from insider Italy, I was very unsure about that, sometimes the laws here can be a bit confusing and looking on the internet seems to give you so many different answers!
keep the info coming and have a FABULOUS Pasqua!
Posted April 21st, 2011
Well you are right!…Internet is a GREAT resource for legal information….But finding the proper answer is not so easy! And sometime we find misleading or incomplete information!
It is like trying to understand if you have the flue researching online about all the different types of deseases that present the same sintoms that you have….
So…the information provided here aim to offer a very general scenario. But each case need to be discussed face to face….Like when you meet your doctor :-))
Right?! ;-)
Posted April 21st, 2011
actually your very right about not googling anything regarding sickness, you may find out you have the same symptoms as the ebola virus and as far as info about Italy , people also have to remember that laws change and its important to have the most recent and relevant information up to date regarding how to live and work in Italy legally.
If we have anyone looking for an immigration lawyer, legal advice, we will most def pass out your contact, your in our online english yellow pages directory, yes?
grazie ancora!
Posted April 27th, 2011
hi….
could u plz let me that is it possiblt to convert Italian tourist visa in spouse/family visa, As my husband is deputed there.
plz help we are being misguided
Posted August 30th, 2011
hello, where are you from? very helpful for visa questions.
Your husband needs to first have his residency complete and his carta d’identita and attestato cittadino ( which means he is legally employed in Italy ) which is done at the palazzo vecchio or main government office in any italian city, check online.
I have had am American friend just do this in Florence . you need to have your marriage certificate translated into italian and apostilled ( VERY IMPORTANT and easy, if you do this in italy you need to get the translated copy apostilled at the tribunale and bring a marco di bollo..).
THEN you need to get an appointment for residency at the local anagrafe and tell them what you are trying to do and bring copies of everything including his paperwork and carta d’identita , and then get the postal kit for motivi familiari , theer should be a list online with everything you need to bring and you can ask at the anagrafe or sportello immagrazione. most likely they will give you an appointment for the questura and you will need to show up with your paperwork and they give you the permission to stay until your residency is completed, basically a piece of paper with at least 3 months or however long it takes. for residency the police will show up at your house so make sure you can be home when you tell them ( they usually will ask when you originally file the paper for residency when you will be home ) and once the police check, you have to wait to get a letter in the mail confirming its completion ( can take a month to arrive ) . Once you have that you head back to the anagrafe and pick up your carta d’identita ( bring 4 passport photos and 5 euros as well as your passport ) .
When you go back to the questura, you also need to bring a “stato fi famiglia” that you will pick up at the palazzo vecchio so if you can do that the same time you pick up your carta d’idenita perfect, they should be able to tell you which office. After all of that, you head back to the questura and they should now begin to process your hard copy permesso di soggiorno ( or carta di soggiorno ) ..
lots to do but its different if you start from your home country so the more details you can provide, the better. my friend has been successful so far!
Posted August 30th, 2011
hello everyone and georgette,
first of all thanks for this nice community to find answers :))
My situation is little bit complicated.
I am level 2 master student and I wantto apply for permesso di attesa occupazione .
My school told me that I can apply after my graduation.
My graduation is on November. but my current permoesso di soggiorno expires on September.
And here is the problem right now I am writing my thesis from outside of the Italy. This means I will have to enter ITALY after my permesso expires (on OCTOBER) for my graduation and to apply for permesso di attesa occupazione.
If I was not going to apply for permesso di attesa occupazione I would definitely get a tourist visa and enter but now I am worried because there will be valid tourist visa on my passport. And I am not sure if it is aproblem for permesso di attesa occupazione??.
A couple of people suggested me to renew my student visa to enter but this is impossible because the consulate doesnt give student visa for 2 months they simply give you tourist visa.
I know the situation is really complicated but I would be more than glad if you shar your opinions with me as soon as possible.
Thanks in advance
Posted September 1st, 2011
hi.. Georgette.. thanks for
your guidance. Indeed u had helped us a lot
.All those people stuck in Italy visa should get into this forum as it has tremendously helped us
Posted September 1st, 2011
thanks twinkle! i myself have been there and I totally understand all of the frustrations regarding visas in Italy, plus considering that the rules often change and you dont really know where to go for help, it can be hard.. if I can help or one of our members can, we try and do so, thats why this website was originally created!
Hello artemis,
to be honest I have never heard of the type of permesso you are trying to get. that sounds very interesting. are you american? usually if you are are , you can enter and stay for 90 days no problem and they go check out this permesso. I do have friends who have renewed their student visa but basically signed up for classes for 6months to one year the school provided them with a letter to take to the questura, that might be an option for you. Otherwise maybe consult michele or a lawyer for this one. Normally there is a special help desk at the anagrafe ( in florence ) for immigrants that you can get the best information for but that won’t be of help if you are out of Italy. I did see this
but I do not know if that applies to your case. good luck!
Posted September 1st, 2011
thanks a lott Georgette I am still trying to find an answer (BTW I am not a US citizen)
I tried to call all numbers of questuras that I could find online but they just dont speak on the phone. anyway thanks for the answer georgette.
Michele if you have any idea please share I would be more than grateful.
Posted September 11th, 2011
i am from Philippines and some one ASK ME TO WORK HIS COMPANY as a secretary and he will be handle my visa.. as you took above, it takes time … my question is, the DO THE VISA CAN BE MADE FAKE????
Posted September 19th, 2011
@ Georgette
The Permesso di soggiorno per attesa occupazione is a temporary permit to stay in Italy given ONLY in case of loss of employment.
In other words, foreigners who lost their jobs due to dismissal or resignation can go to the Job Centre to
declare (within 40 days from the date of termination of employment)
that they lost their job (before the contractual terms) and that they are “immediately available to start a new working activity”.
That permit is also granted to those foreigners who obtained a Visa to enter in Italy for an employed job, but once they arrive in Italy the employer decides not to finalize the job contract. Also in this case the unlucky foreigner can obtain a Permesso di Soggiorno per attesa occupazione that lasts max 6 months.
As for STUDENT VISAS, the Ministry of the Interior in Circular 6786 of 5 September 2011 stated that foreign students who
finish their university studies are NOT entitled to convert their Student permit in PERMESSO ATTESA OCCUPAZIONE (because, as explained it is reserved to those who lost their job).
Anyway….There are several exceptions to these rules, depending on factors that need to be verified case by case. I always suggest to ask for professional advice!
All the Best, Michele
Posted September 29th, 2011
BTW…for some reasons I can’t receive notifications ’s users when someone adds a comment or asks me a question here.
Until I find a way to fix it, my contacts are here:
Posted September 29th, 2011
To Georgette or whomever might know-
I had been referred to the
website before by a friend and also now in your post on getting a visa for italy. I am specifically looking for information about how to apply for one of the 100,000 (or however many there are) work visas that are issued on a first come, first serve basis around January every year. But I did not find any information/link about it on the
site. Does anyone know what link specifically on that site it would be under or if there is info on another site about how to apply for work visas this way.
Posted November 19th, 2011
I just found some very helpful advice here and I come across a similar situation.
I come from Hong Kong and this is the first time I have been in Italy doing a course.
I am holding a study visa which allows me to study Italian in a language school until early March next year.
I want to renew my visa through extending the language course in the current school.
Is it possible to do so?
What is the maximum duration they usually accept?
Posted December 27th, 2011
Just a comment about visa-free access to the Schengen states for New Zealanders:
Unlike other non-EU citizens (eg Americans, Canadians, Australians, Japanese etc) who can only visit Schengen states visa-free for a maximum of three months in any six-month period, New Zealand citizens are permitted to stay for up to three months in EACH of the following Schengen states, regardless of the time spent in other Schengen states:
Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary (if last Schengen destination), Iceland, ITALY, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland
However, if visiting other Schengen states not in the list above, the regular three months in any six-month period restriction applies to New Zealanders.
For more information, visit this EU website –
– or look at this NZ Government travel advisory –
Posted January 4th, 2012
above info is very useful and appreciate on posting and answering all those questions! I have one question about relationship between student visa and permesso di soggiorno. My student visa will expire in May but my permesso di soggiorno is valid until the end of June.
Under this situation, can I leave Italy in May and come back to Italy (or within Shengen country) to stay in the month of June?
I am not quite sure if it’s possible to re-enter Italy without valid visa, and I seem not be able to find the right answer.
Appreciate your advice!
Posted January 14th, 2012
Thanks for your valuble information Georgette. I got a friend who lives in italy, an italian national, who said that he had applied visa for me and is waiting for the quota to be released. Do you have any idea when the quota would be released.
Posted March 18th, 2012
Dear Georgette and Michele,
I wanted to start by thanking you for posting such useful and valuable information! It is wonderful that you are helping to simplify such a complicated, bureaucratic process for us all.
I had a question for you regarding the change from Student status to Work status. My situation is a bit like Artemis’ in that I am finishing my 2-year Laurea Magistrale Program at the Università di Bologna, I am currently in Italy, and now I need to consider where to start in this process. I have gone on a number of job interviews, but employers are skeptical about hiring me since I do not yet have my work visa. The last date for me to graduate, without being “fuori corso”, is in March 2013, and I was going to try to extend my student visa for another year from now to cover that time… however, If I do get hired I can only work for 20hours/week or as an internship with the student status.
So I find myself in a complicated situation. My questions, simplified are:
1. Do you know if I have to return to the U.S. (my home country) in order to apply for a work visa, or may I apply from here (Italy)?
(Furthermore, I got the study visa from the U.S. for the first year only of my master’s program- and have been renewing my “permesso di soggiorno di studio” each year)
2. Is there a general work visa/ permesso that I can apply for or do I need to have an employer that is already willing to hire me?
3. My main question is to ask for any advice you can offer about where/how I should begin this transition process.
I really appreciate your insight and consideration!
Thank you again!
Posted June 8th, 2012
Georgette..
again i am stuck with italian visa . this time we applied for dependent visa
we have fulfilled all the formalities but italian embassy in India has raised an objection on our marrige certificate. our marraige was
registered in Utar pradesh,India .now the embassy in india want certificate in specified format
but in india every state has different format for certificate.
we are being advised to re-registered our marriage and get new certificate
moreover my husband has been in Italy for last one year
and also we have got approval from Italian govt for my dependent visa
plz help me , already twice my tourist visa has been rejected and now again problem in dependent visa
plz advise what should i do? Is there any probility that this time again my visa will be refused? my husband visa has came but not mine . we have applied together this time
totally messed with Italian visa rule and Indian rule.plz adivice
Posted June 12th, 2012
Getting a visa is a legal and time consuming process. There are many processes which should be completed before applying for a visa. You must be fill out a form and submit your real identity as well as many documents. A perfect reason is also necessary for a visa.
Posted July 6th, 2012
Hello everyone especially to you Georgette :)
I just want to ask something,My mom is petitioning me here in the philippines to italy.I want to study in italy.What documents should i bring there in order to study in italy?
Thank you.Have a good day ahead.
Posted July 14th, 2012
Guys. I really need an answer.Hope you can answer me.Thanks
Posted July 27th, 2012
Tourism Visa for Italy.
Probably the most closed-wall system and arrogant visa system. They simpley dont give you second chance. Means you are not expected to be human, as you cannot make mistake. And why mistake. its more of the whims and sinics of the visa-officer for what he wants and what he does not.
I have put a full month of planning with a family of 4. Booked hotel and 3 flights..and people in Italian embassy does not know any other
currency they can read your bank statement. Instead of allocated 1 week wait I receuved a no reply after 2 weeks. This is Europe, with a a staone age visa system.
Posted March 9th, 2013
HI Georgette and thank you very much for your exceptional info.
I don’t know if you can help me,but i am an American citizen that is here on a vacation visa, but have now decided to stay living here for awhile……..more than 3 months and more like a year or so, at least I) I am not a student nor am I working here yet, I will be taking italian courses, but do not know if that will give me what I need to be able to get a student visa? Or is there any other way of applying for a visa to be able to stay passed the 3 months, without leaving for 90 days, in order to be able to come back?
Thank you very much!
Any help is appreciated!
Posted April 9th, 2013
Hello and thank you so much for all this insightful information!! It’s unbelievably hard to locate answers to all these questions online.
I am doing my masters at a school in Madrid and currently have a student residence permit there until October. I need to do an internship of at least 4 months, as part of the program, and would love to do it in Italy. Would I be able to intern in Italy using the Spanish residence permit that I have, or will I have to apply for something separate at the Italian embassy prior to going to Italy?
Also, I have a Jordanian passport in case that makes a difference.
Thank you very much in advance!!!
Posted May 27th, 2013
Hi everbody and ALICIA!
My problem is the same with ALICIA.
I came here with my us passport andnow i would like to stay more than 3 months. I also took a job offer that they would like to make me a contract but they ask me codice fiscale.
I heard that with italian language courses it is possibile to take study visa till 1 year, but it has to be done from US.
Anybody has a suggestion? ALICIA did u find a solution?
Posted May 28th, 2013
My experience with Italian Embassy was horrible and it really felt embarrassing and insulting to have your visa refused. Its probably most arrogant
embassy and you have no chance to be heard if its refused, if you are able to understand the reason of refusal at all.
Its not us, its them who need tourism more than anyone else. I hope they someday come out of their colonial mentality and start treating other non-European nationalities as respectable citizens.
Posted May 28th, 2013
I am from India, I have submitted my Italy visa application form. Can any body let me know How many days require to process the VISA application form.
Posted July 8th, 2013
Hello and a good day to all just wanna just what are the requirements for visiting in italy as I am a filipino and recently working here in hongkong as a domestic helper my father is living in italy in 23 years and he wants me to visit him but unfortunately I dont have any idea how to apply visa and I dont know what are the requirements needed and how much will cost? Please help me mam on this problem please let me know ..thank you so much and very much appreciated if you reply on my email
thank you very much ma’am..
Posted August 8th, 2013
I am vishvanath gunarathna. I like to come to Italy and stay there for my future. I have BSC in IT degree. and im expert in software engineering field. is it possible me to aboard to Italy. please help me. you can visit my FB profile .
VISHVANATH
Posted August 16th, 2013
I am US resident with a military pension and disability benefits. I am interested in better understanding the process if i was to apply for a resident visa and live in tuscany, being that i have a sustainable income i would not need to look for work, but if i chose to find work, could i look for work while I live in Florence while using my resident visa or would i have to leave and return to the US while this process to place?
Posted September 3rd, 2013
I am an indian passport holder and age is 23 years,my parents are working here in italy.currently i am in italy on a tourist visa.Is there any rule that allow me to convert my visa type into employment or family visa ?
Posted September 5th, 2013
Georgette,
I need help and after going through your post it seems that I don’t have much time. I am a PhD scholar in University of Naples in Naples, Italy. I arrived here from India on June, 2013 and my interview to get stay permit is also over next month I’ll get my permit to stay. Presently I am staying in a hostel but in the early November I will be shifted to a private apartment.
I am going back to India on January 2014 to bring my wife here. I needed to know how can I do that. I mean she will be ready with all her documents along with translated and apostilled marriage certificate and will apply for the visa but I have come to know that “Nulla Osta” is a must to bring the spouse.. but it takes 6 months and I have only 3 months left ! Does that mean that its impossible to bring her ?
She is interested to join PhD here and if not then she will join a project with a Professor, but thats not so sure, so for the time being you can assume its just family reunion and she will be staying with me for at least 365 days !
Now is it possible to bring her on a tourist visa of 90 days and then convert it to a long term stay visa ? In that case will I be able to convert the visa within 3 months, because Nulla Osta will still take at least 6 months ! And what do I need to convert tourist visa to long term visa and how long does this take usually ?
Please help….
Posted September 13th, 2013
Hi everybody,
I have a question regarding residence permit regulations in Italy. It would be really kind, if you could help me. My girlfriend is from a non-EU-country and studing in Italy, Milan. She has apllied right now for the extention of her permesso. Since she couldn’t find a proper answer to our question, I thought, maybe you can help us.
Do you know, if she is able to travel to other EU-countries, while awaiting her permesso? or should she ask for something like a temporary permit? If so, does this temporary permesso affect or delay the process of renewal of her permesso?
I would be really thankful to get an answer from you.
Posted October 21st, 2013
I am and Indian currently working as a PhD student of an Italian University and I have a Permesso di Soggiorno, I get a scholarship of 13,600 Euro per year from the University.. that means 1000+ per month. My wife applied for a Research Project in one of the department of my University and the Professor accepted her request, as she won’t be getting any scholarships so I decided to give her complete financial support. She has got the following documents:
1. Acceptance letter from the professor.
2. My declaration of financial support for stay and sustenance and everything.
3. A certificate from my University as a proof of my scholarship.
I wanted to know whether these documents will be enough for her to get a study visa from India to come in Italy to do a 6 months research project in humanities ?
Please reply.
Warm regards
Posted December 20th, 2013
Hi Georgina, thankyou for your newletter re: entering Italy.
My daughter has flown to Italy last weekend and on showing her Visa was told that it was a study visa and started 10th March, 2014 not her itinerary date of the 23rd Feb.
She only received her Visa by courier on the Friday before flying out and never noticed it.
They okayed her flight luckily but her Visa is only until sometime in June, when her return ticket is Nov 9th, 2014.
Do you have any advice for her to be able to stay in Italy until Nov? I have read the info that you have to stay out of the country for 90 days before returning but can she apply for a tourist visa for the rest of her stay? if so how does she go about it?
She is wanting to also know what sort of visa can she apply for to go back next year. She had a work visa in 2013, now a study visa in 2014. What are her options as her partner is a pro cyclist based in Lucca, Italy?
These questions are very hard to ask the Italian Consulate so would really appreciate your help!
Posted February 25th, 2014
Hi Georgette, could u please help me. I m an Indian citizen and since 5 years working in Saudi Arabia. I want to apply for work permit in Italy. I was told to apply for 1 year work permit when applications are open. could u please tell me when those applications are open. is there any specific date to apply for those. Please help me if possible. How to apply for that and what are the requirements. Is there any website I can go and check please let me know.
thanks for your time!!!!!!!!!!!!1
Posted March 6th, 2014
Hi Kamal, to be honest with you, I have no idea when the lottery or ‘flussi’ will be open in 2014, the last information I found about it was here . I hope that helps, if anything, I would email the sportello immagrazione and ask them directly
Help desk: Information via phone, e-mail e skype
Phone: 055 2767078
skype: unefirenze
Hours & days of operation
Monday and Friday 9.00 - 12.15
Wednesday 9.00 - 11.45
Tuesday and Thursday 9.00 - 11.45 and 14.00 - 17.00
Number distribution: From 8.00 until 14.00
Posted March 10th, 2014
Hi Kamal from December the 20th 2013 non seasonal “flussi” are open and there are 8 months to present the request. 17.850 requests will be accepted BUT
over 12000 will be reserved for people who are already in Italy and wants to convert their
2000 for people who want to open their own business in Italy
3000 for people who have attended high school in their country
In other words, there are few chances to get a visa in this way. You should have particular skills or be a business man.
Do u have any person who could invite you?
Alessandro Immigration consultant
Posted March 11th, 2014
@Pauline Mowat,
Hi, excuse me but your daughter has a study visa only for 3 months? She can’t convert it in visa for tourism but she can convert it in other visa ( work ( self employer and employee, waiting for work). If she lives in Lucca and she wants to come to visit us in Massa, 40 km far from Lucca, I can do it for her on my agency ( sorry for my English)
Alessandro
Immigration consultant
Posted March 11th, 2014
Thank you Alessandro for your valuable replies, I was wondering what the process is now to convert a student visa in Italy to a work visa, that’s a question that I get a lot. Is it now easier than in the past?
Posted March 13th, 2014
Alessandro,
My wife Pauline Mowat posted a question re: how does our daughter stay in Italy. She is having trouble logging in to this site so
I have a user name and hope you can help her.
She is living in Lucca and can travel to Massa. Could you please post the address that you are at so she can visit you at your Agency?
Posted March 15th, 2014
you can check out the INPS web page or look it up in fb its called INPS per i Lavoratori Migranti
or follow the link
there are posts in english .
Posted March 24th, 2014
Hi Georgette,
Thank you for starting this amazing forum. I have a clarification in reference to study visa. I have got an opportunity to peruse my masters in Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milan.
One of the university official visited my home country India and informed that there will be an option to extend the visa for an year after completion of masters course. I was also informed that international student passing out of Italian University can convert student permit to a work permit. My masters course would be for 1 year.
Please refer to the below link and confirm if this is correct information.
I would be very thankful as this might help me make important career decisions.
Posted April 3rd, 2014
I think this is a fantastic Blog !!
I am student in the UK. I finish my three year degree course ( BSc(Hons) Leather Technology) this July. I have got an offer to do my training or internship (Basically to get work experience) in an Italian Leather company in Tuscany for a period of one year.
Please could you help me out which category of Visa should I apply for and the documents list for applying the Visa.
Thank you !!
Posted April 6th, 2014
And I am an Indian passport holder.
Posted April 6th, 2014
I just received my business VISA but there is a condition mention “present yourself upon return”. What actually is the meaning i mean simply it says that i need to present my self once i get back to my country. But will it effect me any how during my stay in Italy? Will it cause any problem in traveling other Schengen countries? And if I want to stay more than three months will it cause any problems?
Posted April 9th, 2014
pls, my question is if someone has
to go to italy for missionary from africa,what type of visa is needed.?
Posted April 14th, 2014
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